A severe traffic jam has occurred on the Narayanganj section of the Dhaka-Chattogram highway, causing extreme inconvenience to passengers and vehicle drivers as the country prepares for a four-day consecutive holiday from February 11 to 14 for the national elections.
As of 8:30 am on Monday (February 9), heavy congestion persisted.
A visit to the spot revealed that traffic is jammed for nearly nine kilometers from the Mouchak area to Madanpur in the Chattogram-bound lanes. The congestion appears to have been caused by an increased volume of vehicles.
Shariful Islam, a motorbike rider stuck in the traffic, said, “I left for Meghna but have been stuck here for about 40 minutes.”
Shawon, a passenger, added, “Vehicles have been stuck at the same spot for a long time. I haven’t been able to find out the cause of the jam.”
Several bus drivers said the increased traffic is due to people traveling to their native villages ahead of the elections, which has led to congestion on the road.
Regarding the situation, Julhas Uddin, in-charge of the Shimrail Highway Police Camp, said, “Most of our police personnel are on election duty, which is creating some challenges. We have been working on the traffic situation overnight. The main cause of the congestion is vehicles unable to pass through the Borpa area combined with the high volume of traffic. We are working to ease the jam.”
Officer-in-Charge of Kanchpur Highway Police Station, Shahabur, told Jago News, “I have not seen any accidents or incidents that could have caused the traffic jam. I was on the highway until late at night and am checking into the situation.”